Were There Groups In Ancient Judaism That Cultivated Esoteric Knowledge And Transmitted It Secretly? With The Discovery And Burgeoning Study Of The Dead Sea Scrolls And Particularly Of The Documents Legislating The Social Structure Of The Qumran Group, The Foremost Paradigm For Analysis Of The Group's Social Structure Has Become The Sect. This Is Still Dominant, Having Replacing The Monastic Paradigm Used By Some Of The Earliest Scholars Of The Scrolls. By Examining Historical And Literary Sources, Stone Uncovers Evidence For The Existence Of Other Secret Groups In Ancient Jewish Society. This Line Of Study Leads Stone Not Only To Consider The Classical Jewish Apocalypses As Pseudo-esoteric, But Also To Discern In Them The Footsteps Of Hidden, Truly Esoteric Traditions Cultivated In The Circles That Produced The Apocalypses. This Discovery Has Significant Implications, Especially Considering The Enormous Growth Of Study Of The Apocalyptic In The Judaism Of The Second Temple Period And In Nascent Christianity Over The Last Seventy Years. Secret Societies In Ancient Judaism -- Esoteric, Mysteries, And Secrecy -- Esoteric As A Social Category -- The Social Organization Of Secrecy -- Initiation And Graded Revelation -- Other Secret Jewish Groups And Traditions -- The Social Setting Of Esoteric Tradition. Michael E. Stone. Includes Bibliographical References And Index.